The Mentor
by amara83
Summary: Kagome gets some strange feelings about her new mentor. The girl is human...right?
1. The Mentor

Title: The Mentor  
  
Genre: General  
  
Pairings: a small hint of InuYasha/Kagome  
  
Rating: G  
  
Summary: There's something strange about Kagome's new mentor. She doesn't possess any jewel shards, yet Kagome gets an odd feeling about her. The girl is human...right?  
  
Today was the day. All around Kagome, kids were talking excitedly about the new mentor program going on. Each ninth grade student was paired up with a student from a high school who would be a mentor to the younger student. It gave the kids "someone to look up to," as many of the teachers had quoted from the sheet Kagome had brought home to her mother.  
  
"I think it's a splendid idea, Kagome," Mrs. Higurashi had said. "With you being the oldest, you don't really have anyone to look up to." With that, Kagome had filled out the required form asking what type of person she'd like to be paired up with. Now, here she was, in the courtyard waiting for her mentor to show up. All students, mentors and charges alike, had been given a file and picture of the person they were to be paired up with. Kagome opened up the file and stared down at the girl who would, hopefully, become a friend as well as a mentor.  
  
"Amara Takahashi. 18 years old, born in America, moved to Tokyo five years ago...", Kagome was reading the file out loud when a voice interrupted her.  
  
"You must be Kagome, since you're reading my file. I'm Amara. Looks like we're going to be together for awhile, huh?"  
  
Kagome looked up into a girl's face. The girl was really pretty, curly auburn hair and sea-green eyes. She was smiling and was holding out her hand. Kagome shook it and smiled back. She couldn't help but look at the girl oddly though. Something about her seemed familiar somehow...  
  
"Yes, I'm Kagome. I didn't mean to read your file out loud. It looks like we have a lot in common, too. Both of us aren't all that good in Math."  
  
"We both like history," Amara said, smiling. "What's your favorite time period?"  
  
"The Feudal Era. I'm drawn to it. It just seems really interesting." Kagome couldn't shake the feeling she was having. It was almost like the one she had when she sensed jewel shards, but Amara didn't have any on her. "Could she be a demon?", Kagome thought. She dismissed the thought immediately. All she was feeling was nerves, plain and simple.  
  
"I like the Feudal Era too. There's some crazy legends about my family that go back to that time period. I guess that's why I want to study it after I get out of school; you know, maybe see if there's any truth to them." Amara looked down as she said that. "I know it sounds crazy," she continued, "but...I think the legends could be true, the ones about demons and stuff."  
  
This hooked Kagome. Although Japanese people respected ancient ways, not many people her age believed that demons could be real. For the rest of the day, she and Amara talked about the feudal era. As the final bell rang, Kagome promised to talk to Amara later on and ran back to the Shrine. She exchanged her books for some snack food at her house, and then ran up to the old well house. She couldn't wait to tell the others about Amara. "Maybe I can even bring her to meet everyone, then InuYasha can see if she's a demon or not." Although Kagome didn't think Amara was a demon, she knew something was very different about her.  
  
"I just got the oddest feeling while I was talking to her. It was almost like she possessed a jewel shard, but I couldn't see one on her. She also mentioned believing in demons, since she said something about her family history and demons were somehow connected. I just ask if I could bring her here so InuYasha could see for himself. I'm no good at sniffing them out like he is." Kagome's compliment had reached InuYasha's ears and a slight blush crept into his cheeks. He stood up before anyone could notice.  
  
"I say we check it out. Invite her here and we'll see if she's a demon or not." Kagome didn't take much reassurance in his words, especially since he drew his sword as he said this.  
  
Miroku spoke up, "Not that I'm against what InuYasha is saying, but we might want to check on her before we invite her here. If you two remember correctly," at this, the monk looked at InuYasha and Kagome together, "you're the only ones who can pass through the well and to the other time. This girl might not be able to do that if she's just human. I suggest, Kagome, that you try to learn more about your friend. See if she is a demon and if she means you no harm, I don't see any problem with her coming here."   
  
  
  
Kagome agreed, and after a bit more talking, she headed back to her world and called Amara.  
  
"Hi, Amara, it's Kagome. Listen, is there anyway we could study at your house tomorrow? I know this is short notice, but I really need some help in history class. We're studying the Feudal Era and you mentioned something about your family history being recorded starting in that time...see, we're writing a paper and...oh, sorry, I was just nervous about calling. Thank you so much for saying I could come over. No, I've got your address in the file the school gave me...alright, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Is around noon okay? It is? Good, see you. 'Bye." Kagome flopped down on her bed, thankful that Ji-chan had given her a phone for her birthday. She had been so nervous about calling Amara and asking to come over that she probably sounded like an idiot. She was nervous about the whole deal, trying to figure out if Amara was a demon. She just wanted to know for sure...  
  
"Hey, Kagome." Souta, her little brother, had apparently knocked on the door. He came into her room with the family cat, Buyo in his arms. He sat the bed next to Kagome and asked what was up. "You've been acting weirder than normal. Is it your mentor? Is she tough?" Kagome laughed, "I wish she was tough. It'd make finding out if she was a demon easier."   
  
"You think she's a demon?!", Souta cried, "you mean, like InuYasha?" Shortly after Kagome had begun traveling back and forth between the feudal and modern times, InuYasha had come to her time looking for her and Souta had met him. Ever since, her younger brother had a small case of hero worship toward the hanyou. Kagome sighed, "Maybe, but we don't know for sure. I kept getting an odd feeling around her. Not a bad one or anything, but I could tell she was different. I'm going over there tomorrow, but I'd really like it if you didn't mention the whole possible demon thing to mom or Ji-chan. I know they don't mind me going back and forth between times, but I don't know how they'd handle a modern day demon." Souta contemplated this and agreed, "Ji-chan might try to banish her from the house."  
  
  
  
The next day, Kagome stood outside a house that looked very much like her own, waiting for Amara to answer the door. "Please don't let her dad, if they are demons, be some huge thing..." Luckily, Amara answered.  
  
"Hi Kagome. My parents left us the house and actually dragged out all the old family history. Some of it is even written on scrolls, and that stuff dates back to the feudal era. Mom and Dad also said that if you were careful, you could take some of them home with you if you needed to. Would you like something to drink?"  
  
Kagome walked in and closed the door behind her. "Oh, not right now. I might as well get to work. Can I look at the scrolls first?" After Amara told Kagome where to leave her shoes, the two girls went into the dining area of the house. Several books and scrolls were scattered on the low table and Kagome had to be careful not to rip any as she sat down. She picked up an older scroll and began to read, listening as Amara told her about them.   
  
"The earlier scrolls are written about my ancestors, rather than by them. That one you have is the first scroll ever written about my family. It's mostly about my greatest grandfather and his people..." Kagome scarcely heard the words that Amara was saying instead, her eyes were glued to the scroll.  
  
"It seems that the young wolf demon and his pack are having troubles. Since none of his kind know how to write yet, he has appointed me to write what goes on. He is arrogant, and many of his pack do not wish to follow him, calling him a "mortal lover". The only one to stand by him is a young female, whom the pack calls Ayame. She's very pretty, but like the leader, who calls himself Kouga, she's also very stubborn. I believe this pack won't last much longer, although if I say as much to Kouga, he will surely take my life..."  
  
  
  
Kagome stopped reading. Amara's words seemed to echo in her head.   
  
"The earlier scrolls are written about my ancestors, rather than by them. That one you have is the first scroll ever written about my family. It's mostly about my greatest grandfather and his people..."  
  
"You're...you're a demon?" Kagome. She placed the scroll down carefully and looked up. By now, Amara had taken her hair, which was down, and rolled it up into a bun. It was then Kagome noticed her ears; they came to a point, like Kouga's...  
  
Kouga...Ayame...  
  
Sitting down across from Kagome, Amara looked straight at Kagome. Her voice was calm and very matter-of-fact. "I'm a demon, full blooded and all that. If you don't want me to mentor you that's fine, seeing what I am now..."  
  
Kagome shook her head. If only Amara knew... "I don't mind really, but perhaps you should tell me more about yourself. I'm not afraid." Amara looked at Kagome and grinned back, and Kagome noticed her sharp canines.   
  
"I can tell you're not...I guess I've got some explaining to do." 


	2. Into the Past

Title: The Mentor: Chapter 2 - Into the Past  
  
Genre: General  
  
Pairings: implied InuYasha/Kagome, Sango/Miroku (reactions to situations)  
  
Rating: PG (a bad word or two)  
  
Summary: While in the Feudal Era, the InuYasha gang witness some of Amara's powers. Kouga  
  
also learns about her.  
  
Kagome sat down at the edge of the well. Beside her, Amara looked doubtful. "You mean to tell  
  
me," the wolf youkai said, "that this well takes you back to the Feudal Era and you think I can go  
  
back too since I'm a demon?" Kagome nodded. "Sure, I figure that's what will happen. Wouldn't  
  
you like to meet your ancestors and meet others like you?" Amara had told Kagome that, as far as  
  
her family knew, they were the last of their kind. "Kinda puts a damper on getting married,"  
  
Amara said laughing. "Oh, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with humans, but I could never  
  
really reveal myself to them so there's not much point in dating if I can't tell someone the entire  
  
truth. Not everyone is as open minded as you are." Kagome had agreed and told Amara about the  
  
well and her time traveling abilities. Amara had been skeptical, but when Kagome told her about  
  
the Shikon jewel and showed Amara the fragments, the older girl believed her. Now, they were  
  
sitting on the edge of the well, preparing to go back in time.  
  
"If anything else," Kagome thought, "she won't be the last of her kind there." Taking a deep  
  
breath, both girls jumped down into the well's darkness.  
  
"I can't believe it, you were right. I made it." Amara had pulled herself out of the well and helped  
  
Kagome with her book bag as the younger girl climbed out. Together, the two girls headed to  
  
Kaede's village. Once they entered the village, Kagome saw that her friends were already at  
  
Kaede's hut: Miroku and Sango were talking about something with Kaede, InuYasha was  
  
lounging about on a low tree limb, and Shippou was playing a game with Kiara.  
  
"Hey guys! Everyone, this is Amara, the girl I told you about." One by one, six pairs of eyes  
  
focused on Amara. Kagome noticed that unlike herself, Amara didn't cower when she was the  
  
center of attention. After giving introductions, the two girls joined the rest, but not without some  
  
questions directed at the newest member.  
  
"So you're full blooded, huh? Related to Kouga, too. That's a damn shame." This comment came  
  
from InuYasha who, although Kouga wasn't an enemy like Naraku, despised the wolf demon all  
  
the same.  
  
"Not so, InuYasha. I think Amara here is a very beautiful example of a female demon." Miroku's  
  
comment caused Sango to get huffy, and her irritation deepened when Miroku proceeded to ask  
  
Amara to bear his child. Even Amara was taken back by this. Trying to snatch her hand away  
  
from the monk, she explained her situation.  
  
"No offense, Miroku, but you're not my type. I'm trying to find a pack of wolf demons to possibly  
  
befriend. Kagome says she knows of one around here."  
  
"Well, then, you'd have to look for Kouga." InuYasha stated, " There's not much left of his pack,  
  
only Ginta and Hakkaku. He's trying to unite his bunch with Ayame's pack, but that's not going so  
  
well. Sooner or later you'll run into them." He then decided to change the subject. "So Amara,  
  
since you're a full demon, what sort of abilities do you have?" His tone was somewhat  
  
challenging, since he knew he was considerably faster than the wolf demons. The only reason  
  
Kouga was so fast was the fact he cheated with the Shikon Jewel shards in his legs.  
  
"Well, I'm fast and I'm strong. Why, do I need to prove myself to you?" Kagome noticed that  
  
Amara had a bit of cockiness in her tone, and she had the same smug grin that Kouga had. She  
  
couldn't wait to see what happened if they ever met. As InuYasha was challenging Amara,  
  
Kagome got the weird feeling again. "What is it, now? Amara doesn't have any jewel shards on  
  
her or else I'd be able to see them." Lost in her thoughts, Kagome heard InuYasha shout, "GO"  
  
and she glanced up in time to see them take off. She looked behind her and noticed that Miroku,  
  
Sango and Shippou were on Kiara's back. "Let's follow them from the sky," said Sango as  
  
Kagome lifted herself up, "I have a feeling InuYasha may loose this challenge."  
  
"Keh, I'm faster than her. I knew it, she's just a regular wolf demon. Nothin' special about her."  
  
InuYasha had gotten pretty far ahead of Amara and had slowed down some. He had challenged  
  
her to a race to the top of the hill on the outside of the village. The hill was fairly steep, and  
  
InuYasha knew he could get there in no time flat.  
  
Suddenly, a blur passed by him and InuYasha almost ended up slamming into a tree. Picking up  
  
speed, he realized it was Amara...and she was as fast as Kouga. "What the hell?!" When InuYasha  
  
finally reached the hill, Amara was lying on her back, face turned to the sky. "YOU  
  
CHEATED!!!" roared InuYasha. "There's no way you could have beat me without help. You've  
  
got jewel shards in your legs, just like that stupid Kouga!!" Amara opened one eye and grinned at  
  
InuYasha. "I didn't cheat. I don't have any jewel shards, or else I would have given them to  
  
Kagome. Why don't you just chill, InuYasha, that yelling can't be good for your blood pressure."  
  
By now, Kagome and the others had arrived and were getting off Kiara. They had seen the whole  
  
thing. They were all wondering the same thing that InuYasha was. Kagome began thinking.  
  
Suddenly, it hit her.  
  
"I know how you did it!" Kagome looked excited, realizing she had retained something from  
  
school. The others, including Amara, looked back at Kagome as she bounced around from one  
  
foot to the other. "Well, how did she do it? She cheated, right?", InuYasha still thought she had  
  
cheated but if Kagome had never sensed any shards, but still got an odd feeling whenever she was  
  
around Amara. It was then Miroku hit InuYasha over the head with his staff. "Quiet InuYasha.  
  
Some of us would like to hear Kagome's explanation."   
  
"See, when Amara and I went through the well together, I realized she had to have a piece of the  
  
shard. She'd have too, since that's the only way I can go back and forth. I couldn't see one or sense one  
  
on her, but she does have one...in a way." Kagome took a deep breath before continuing.  
  
"Kouga has shards in his legs and one in his arm right? Well, in Biology we learned that  
  
when a foreign substance enters the body, it is either accepted or rejected by our cells. Since we  
  
don't really know how long Kouga had, or will have, the shards in his body, they may have gotten  
  
accepted by his cells. This means that some of the jewel's power must have been in Kouga's body  
  
for the rest of his life, and it was probably passed down. It a genetic thing, like hair color or eye  
  
color. It might have skipped a few generations, but the power could still be in Amara's body.  
  
That's why she's so fast." The rest of the group contemplated this, and agreed it could be possible.  
  
Kagome had shown them her school books, and the one about "science" had intrigued all of them.  
  
Kagome could have a point.  
  
Kouga was running towards the village where Kagome sometimes stayed when she came to the  
  
past. The past few weeks had been tough; combining Ayame's pack with Ginta, Hakkaku and  
  
himself wasn't easy. Her pack was mostly older demons, and they didn't like being told what to do  
  
by some younger upstart. The only one they really listened to was Ayame, but Kouga suspected  
  
that was mostly because Ayame's grandfather was a very wise youkai. He was old, so he probably  
  
wouldn't last much longer. Ayame had come to him for help in trying to unite her pack, since it  
  
was beginning to fall apart. He had decided to go see Kagome and see if she could offer any  
  
advice. He had reached the large hill when he heard Kagome's voice, talking about jewel shards.  
  
He heard her say his name, followed by the name Amara. He looked towards the group and  
  
noticed a new member. He was about to call out when the newcomer turned around.  
  
"She looks like Ayame," Kouga thought. "A little older, and her hair is a bit darker, but she looks  
  
like Ayame...she has the scent of a demon...she's a wolf demon." Kouga had a hard time  
  
breathing. There weren't all that many female wolf demons in the area, but what hit him so hard was the fact  
  
that he knew Ayame had no relatives besides her grandfather and uncle. That and the fact Kagome  
  
had mentioned his name with this girl's. He decided to get some more information on her.  
  
"Kouga! I'm so glad you're here. I was going to see if I could come up to the mountains later...I  
  
have something to show you." Kagome had seen Kouga first and had come running up to him.  
  
Kouga noticed with a smile that InuYasha wasn't thrilled about Kagome's reaction, but hadn't said  
  
anything just yet. He allowed her to pull him towards the rest of the group. Up close, he could tell  
  
that Amara's eyes were the same color as his and he could see her pointed ears. "Kouga, this is  
  
Amara. She's from my time...and she's related to you." After a bit of explaining from Kagome, as  
  
well as the scrolls from Amara's house that had been tucked away in Kagome's book bag, Kouga  
  
sat back with a grin on his face. He immediately pulled Amara into an embrace. "This is a proud  
  
day. You must come back with me and meet the others. You're the proof I need to help unite  
  
Ayame's pack. You're proof that if we are a strong pack, we can survive centuries later." Kouga  
  
looked happy, and Kagome could have sworn she saw his eyes water up for a second. "It must be  
  
such a happy thought knowing that his people are going to survive. I know he was worried about  
  
that after Kagura killed his men." Kagome even got some tears in her eyes when Kouga draped  
  
his arm around Amara's shoulders.  
  
"Come back with me," Kouga was saying to Amara, "it's time to meet your family." 


	3. Family

  
Title: Family   
Genre: General   
Pairing: all canon pairings hold   
Rating: PG-13 (bit of violence)   
Summary: Kouga takes Amara to meet the rest of the wolf demon pack. The celebrations are cut short by some unexpected visitors.

  
Kouga and Amara raced along the ground toward the mountains where Kouga's pack lived. Above them, Kiara carried Kagome and the others. InuYasha complained loudly that he didn't see why the rest of them had to go. It was Amara who was part of the pack, not them. Miroku reminded the hanyou that Kouga had been very generous in inviting them all back and having a celebration in Amara's honor, and that this wasn't the time to sulk.   
"I am not sulking; I'm just saying that we should be looking for more shards and not celebrating with Kouga and his kind." InuYasha did quiet down once they reached the mountain. Kouga and Amara had already disappeared behind the waterfall as Kiara landed and they all got off. As they entered the den of the wolf demons, they heard Kouga's voice ring out above rest.

  
"Brothers and sisters, today is a day for celebration. One of our own has come to us from the future. Magic has brought a descendent of our pack to this time to show us if we truly unite, we will be strong and survive throughout the centuries." The pack was silent, and Kagome watched as some pack members came up and sniffed at Amara curiously.   
"Yep, she's one of us", said a male. The rest of the pack came forward and introduced themselves. Amara noticed that majority of the pack was older, and mostly male. There were few females, one of which was Ayame. Ayame was tense, this female was about Kouga's age, and she was already looking at the girl as a threat. The way Kouga was acting though, she was only a descendent from their pack. Ayame would treat her as a member too, unless the girl did start acting interested in Kouga. By this time, Kouga had called for a celebration. Most of the males were sorted into groups and went off to hunt some food. Soon, the only ones that were left was the InuYasha-tachi, Ayame, Kouga, Amara, Hakkaku and Ginta.

  
Gathering in a small group, Kouga noticed that Ginta and Hakkaku were looking at Amara with interest. As the final two of his original pack, Kouga had held them with a special regard. They were the ones that always managed to talk some sense into him, even if he didn't want to hear it most of the time. As Kouga watched them, he noticed that whenever Amara looked back at the two they would look down and blush. This amused Kouga greatly and he couldn't help but pick on them just a bit.   
"So, Amara. Do you have a mate back in your time?"   
"Oh, no," Amara said, "but that's okay. I've haven't met anyone that makes me feel special."   
"Good, since only a wolf youkai would be worthy of you. There are a few males here that might be interested, like Ginta and Hakkaku for instance. They fight when needed and smart enough not to walk into anything stupid. I believe they'd be worthy of you." Kouga saw the mixed looks of pride and panic cross Ginta and Hakkaku's faces. Amara looked back at them and smiled. "Now Kouga, don't go and put pressure on them. I'm sure they're both wonderful guys and I hope I get the chance to get to know them." Blushing, the two announced that they had some things to do, and left the group quickly.   
Ayame watched the exchange that went on between Ginta and Hakkaku. Both of them were interested in the new girl. _"Good,"_ Ayame thought,_"that will keep her away from Kouga."_ Amara wasn't expressing any interest in Kouga, but since she was a wolf youkai, Ayame had to be sure.

  
"Amara-chan, can I see you for a minute outside?" Amara nodded and followed the other wolf girl outside. They walked a bit until they were on the bank of the river. Ayame sat down first. When Amara sat, Ayame asked her point blank, "What do you think of Kouga-kun?"   
"Well, he's been very nice in bringing me back here. He seems to be a good leader, and the pack will survive as long as he continues to seek help from others..." Amara paused for a second, then added, "I'm not interested in him if that's why you asked me out here. As he said, I'm a descendant of this pack. I'm a descendent of Kouga and his mate." Here, Amara got quiet, but Ayame fumed.   
"MATE?? Who is his mate going to be? If you know, you have to tell me. If it's not me, I'll find whoever it is and..." She was cut off by Amara's hand on her shoulder. "Ayame, look at your reflection, and then look at mine. Tell me what you see." Ayame looked down at her reflection. Beside hers, Amara's was almost identical. There were some slight differences, like that Amara's hair was a bit darker and her eyes were the same shade of blue as Kouga's, but other than that, Ayame couldn't really see any difference.   
"You mean, I'm going to be Kouga's mate?" When the other youkai nodded, Ayame looked down. "He's only interested in Kagome-chan, though. He made a promise to marry me once, a long time ago. Now that we're older I've learned I shouldn't hold onto such childish dreams."   
"But Ayame, don't you see? I'm here because Kouga will take you as a mate someday. If he didn't, I wouldn't have been born, right? It's not a childish dream to hope that the person you love will love you back someday. It may take some time, but I know Kouga has some type of feelings for you." Amara paused for a moment, then added, "Besides, he's a boy. It takes them a while to figure out that they like a girl and to do something about it." The younger wolf youkai smiled, then looked up and pointed, "Look, the others are back with food. Let's go celebrate." Walking back, Ayame thought that things for the pack could only get better.

  
There was quite a feast going on in the den. Several wild boars had been caught, along with fish and even a few stray horses. Kouga had figured Amara wouldn't eat a human, so he had asked that only animals be killed. There as talking all around the den and several members were asking Amara about the future of the pack. She answered the questions best she could, but for the most part, she tended to hang around with Kagome.   
"This is so weird," she was saying to the younger girl and Sango while they ate some fish, "I've never had this much attention placed on me before. Now, I'm the most popular person here. It's kinda freaking me out." Kagome and Sango grinned. "You'll get used to it. Kouga will probably give you all types of attention since you're a direct descendant of him and Ayame." Kagome patted her friend on the shoulder.  
"Hey look," Kagome pointed and Amara looked across the room to see Ginta and Hakkaku coming towards her. In their hands, they each held a small wrapped bundle. "H-Here, these are for you." Ginta held out one bundle, while Hakkaku held out his. "Yeah, welcome to the pack." Inside Ginta's was a necklace made of leather with polished stones attached to it. Hakkaku's gift was a knife made out of a type of bone. Amara beamed, "Thanks Ginta, thanks Hakkaku. They're great." With this, she gave each of them a quick hug and then went off to show her presents to Kouga. Both demons grinned and walked off in a bit of a daze.   
Kagome and Sango exchanged a look. "For as long as I've known them," said Kagome, "they've always seemed like the best of friends. I hope that being interested in Amara doesn't change that." Sango agreed. "Let's hope that they don't lose their heads when trying to get her as a mate."

  
As the feast was coming to a close, Ayame and Amara went outside. The day was nice and warm and the sun shown brightly. The two had bonded quickly, and Amara knew it was more than just the fact that she had told Ayame she would become Kouga's mate. It seemed like maybe the younger wolf youkai was lonely, and given the fact that she was the only female around her age didn't seem to help much. Ayame was about to say something, when a dark shape passed over her. "That was too big for a cloud..." Before Amara could finish her sentence, the sky became black. Looking up, the two girls saw something that resembled a bird.  
"Oh no. Amara, we have to go back to the den. It's the Birds of Paradise." Ayame looked frightened, and once Amara got a good look at the demons, she understood why. The bottom half was made up of some giant bird creature, with a face that had sharp teeth. On top of the bird-like body, the upper half of a demon sat. Amara guessed that put together they equaled one demon, but she didn't want to find out for sure. Both girls took off at a run, but Amara was faster. Just as she was about to reach the den opening, she heard a scream.

  
Ayame was caught. The first demon that they had seen had caught Ayame by the waist in one of its talons. It was flying away, but the others were closing in on the den. Reaching the entrance, she began yelling for Kouga. When the others came out, InuYasha among them, she explained the situation. The look on Kouga's face was pure pain. Yelling that it was time for an attack, he gathered the others in preparation for the fight. Armed with her new knife, Amara went off after Ayame's kidnapper.   
"Amara! Stop!!" Kouga's voice was lost to Amara. She was too far ahead. "Ginta, Hakkaku, follow Amara. Protect her no matter what." They nodded and set off. By now, InuYasha had lost his patience with the Birds and was going after them with his claws and sword. Kagome shot a few with her arrows, and Sango was doing many of them in with her boomerang. Kouga joined in the fray, but his thoughts were elsewhere. _"Please let Ayame and Amara be alright."_

  
Ginta and Hakkaku had managed to catch up to Amara. She had slowed her approach seeing that the demon she was after slow down too. "Amara-chan," Ginta panted, "let us get Ayame-chan. We promised Kouga we'd protect you." Hakkaku nodded, "Yes, it would be safer if you let us handle it. We are more skilled at fighting the Birds of Paradise." Amara smiled back at them but shook her head. "No guys, Ayame was with me when that big buzzard got her. It's my responsibility to get her back. You two can help out, but this is mainly my fight." She paused for a moment then continued. "I want one of you to lure it back here. Start yelling or something. I need to get closer to it." Ginta and Hakkaku exchanged a look, but they went out anyway.  
By now, the Bird of Paradise had changed direction, obviously knowing that three other demons were close by. Hakkaku gulped, and then shouted, "Hey!! Wouldn't you rather have us?" Ginta joined in, "Yeah, two more for less effort. Come on, we're tasty." The demon began to dive at them. Giving up their brave front, the two wolf youkai began to run for their lives. Just as they thought they weren't going to make it, Amara leapt up from the rock she had been hiding behind. She landed on the creature's back, behind the upper body. The demon swung around and hissed at Amara, then scratched her deep with it's claws. Ignoring the pain, she plunged her knife deep into the demon's chest, then for good measure, yanked it out and stabbed the bird-demon body several times. The demon began to fall. Amara caught a glimpse of Ayame's body falling and she jumped off the bird. Barely catching Ayame, Amara began to fall as well. Just then, the pain overtook her, and everything went black.

  
Amara groaned as she sat up. Her head felt like it weighed a ton. Glancing down, she noticed that she was no longer wearing the clothes she had come to the past with. Her chest was bandaged up, as was her left wrist. She was mostly covered with a wolf pelt, and she had to admit she felt warm despite the huge headache she was having. "Hey, you're awake." Ginta's voice caused Amara to remember what state she was in, and quickly pulled the wolf pelt up and held it to her chest.   
"What happened? Where's everybody?"   
"Kouga and everyone went off to make sure that the Birds of Paradise were dead. Hakkaku and I stayed here to look after you and Ayame. She's fine; a little scratched up, but fine. The two of you were knocked out when we found you. You were lucky that you managed to fall on the Bird demon's body. You should get some rest." Before he could say anything else, Amara asked about her clothes.   
"Oh, well..." here, Ginta had the good sense to blush a bit, "Kagome-neechan had to remove them in order to bandage up your wound. We've made you some clothes though." He held up a piece of something furry, but Amara didn't want to concentrate too hard. "That's fine. I'll put them on in a little while." Voices were heard from the other end of the den, and Amara saw Hakkaku walking alongside Ayame, telling her she should still rest. When the two wolf youkai saw that Amara was awake, they both rushed over to give her a gentle hug.   
"I'm so glad you're alright, Amara-chan." When she pulled away, Ayame had tears in her eyes. "I was so worried when I woke up and saw your chest all torn." Hakkaku nodded, "Yeah, Kouga yelled at us, but we told him what you told us, about it being your fight and all. He says you're really brave, a true wolf demon if there ever was one." Ginta agreed, "It's true. Although he was really angry that you ran off like you did, he said you showed true pack loyalty by going after Ayame." Amara smiled.

  
"Well, that's good. I do want to be part of this pack you know. Now let me see whatever that is you made me. I'm in need of some clothes." Ayame smiled back at Amara as she examined the clothes that Ginta and Hakkaku had made with the help of an older female. The clothing was similar to what Amara had seen on all the other wolf youkai. The fur skirt was black, as were the leg guards. _"They remind me of those horrible leg warmers back in the '80's"_, Amara thought. Next was a chest plate, made of dark grey metal, along with two arm bands that went from her wrist to just below her elbow.   
"What I want to know," she said as she gathered all the clothing up, "is which one of you took my measurements while I was asleep." Ginta and Hakkaku blushed, but told her that Kagome had done it when she was fixing up her wound. Amara smiled, and asked if she could have some privacy while she put on her new clothes. The two males went to the opening of the den to wait for Kouga and the others. Ayame helped Amara into the chest plate, and when Amara was just about finished, Ayame produced some wrappings.   
"For your feet," the younger girl explained. "Although we have stronger and tougher feet than most demons, the wraps help protect them more." Nodding, Amara wrapped some of the cloth around her feet and stood up. Once again, she was struck by how much she and Ayame looked alike. Ayame noticed it too, saying, "Wow, it's like looking back at myself...almost." Going to the mouth of the den, Ginta and Hakkaku told Amara how nice she looked, and offered up their earlier gifts. Amara put the necklace on, and placed her knife, which Hakkaku had cleaned, into its hilt that attached to her skirt.

  
By now, Kouga returned, telling Amara that InuYasha and Kagome had gotten into a fight on the way back, and that she had left for home. Amara smiled and thanked everyone, promising to return in a few days. She gave Kouga and Ayame a hug, waved at Ginta and Hakkaku, and took off, although it was at a much slower pace due to her injuries.   
Kouga looked down at Ayame. She seemed happier now than she had been earlier. Perhaps having Amara around would help the girl. He recalled his worry at the sight of Ayame laying motionless next to Amara when Kouga had found them. Although her injuries weren't as serious as Amara's, Kouga had truly panicked. She still looked a little weak, and so Kouga wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Come on, let's go back inside." Ayame smiled, and together they went into the den, hoping to see Amara again soon.


	4. Learning to Trust

  
Title: Learning to Trust   
Genre: General   
Pairings: None   
Rating: PG   
Summary: While Amara is out hunting, she befriends a girl in the woods. What happens when Rin discovers her rescuer is a wolf demon? 

  
Amara shot ahead of Ginta and Hakkaku. Ever since the whole ordeal with the Birds of Paradise, Kouga had ordered that someone always accompany Amara wherever she went. Not that she minded though, since most of the time it was Ginta or Hakkaku that would come along. She liked both of them, and she could tell Kouga had pretty much planned it from the start to always have one, or both, of them in her presence. Today, both of them had volunteered to help Amara with her hunting skills. Keeping up with her, though, was an entirely different matter. Running along with them were some of the wolves.

  
"Amara-chan," Hakkaku panted when he and Ginta finally caught up to her, "why do you have to go so fast? You know Ginta and I can't keep up." Earlier, Amara had tried to explain how she could run fast like Kouga, but gave up since the pack didn't know much about science. They just accepted the fact that since she was a descendant of Kouga and Ayame, she had inherited his speed. She still wasn't totally over her injuries from a few weeks ago, but she could still keep up with Kouga.  
She had come to Sengoku Jidai by herself this time. Kagome had a test she really needed to study for, so she told Amara to tell InuYasha and the others she would be back right after the test. Unfortunately for them, Kagome's test was still a couple of days away. When Amara told this to InuYasha, he got all huffy and said "Keh, she's slowing us down on purpose. Just because we got into a fight, she's gotta drag it out." Amara had simply rolled her eyes and then made her way towards the mountains where Kouga and Ayame's pack lived. She noted that she spent more time with the wolf pack than Kagome and the others. When she had tried apologizing to Kagome, the younger girl told her not to worry. Now, here she was, hunting with Ginta and Hakkaku. She had to admit, dressed in her fur loincloth and armor, she felt almost like she belonged in the past.

"I'm sorry, guys." She plopped down next to them and stretched out on the grass. "I suppose we can rest for a bit. I am a bit worn out." Both males sat up, alarm on their faces.  
  
"Should we take you back?"  
"Are you hurt?"  
"Should we carry you?"  
"Kouga's going to kill us."   
She rolled over on her stomach and grinned at them. "I'm fine, just worn out a little. I've got to pace myself until I'm better." She stopped suddenly and sniffed the air. Something was wrong. Suddenly, there was a yell from a girl. Like a shot, she ran towards the scream, Ginta and Hakkaku yelling for her to stop. She skidded to a halt just at the edge of a small clearing. There were five bandits, and one of them held up a small girl. She had long dark hair and her yukata was checkered with orange and white and she wore a green obi around her waist. 

  
"Well now, aren't you just a cute little thing. Shame somebody left you all by yourself out here in the woods where anyone could just find you." The leader was the one who said this. Bigger than his comrades, he held the girl up off the ground by her obi. The girl kicked and fought, but the man held her at arms length. Amara growled. She felt something spark inside her. Some of the wolves that had followed her growled as well. As the men continued to joke about the small girl, she piped up.   
"You had better let me go," she said very matter of factly, "or else Sesshoumaru-sama will be angry."   
"Oh yeah," the leader replied. "What's he gonna do? Some lord won't do anything to us, especially one we've never heard of."  
Amara thought it odd that this little girl was referring to Sesshoumaru, the same demon that InuYasha had said was his brother. Although, come to think of it, they had mentioned a small girl that he took care of. Feeling the need to do something, she popped up from her hiding place. Startled, the men backed away.  
"Listen demon," their leader said, still holding the girl, "don't make us kill you. All we want is the girl. We've got no quarrel with you."  
"You're right, of course, what you do to the girl is really none of my business. Sadly though, I don't really think she likes being handled by you, so why don't you just let her go."  
She started toward them, her wolves by her side, growling at the men. The men took a few steps back, but the leader refused to let go of the girl. Amara was getting impatient. Finally, she lunged at them and pounced on the leader. This caused the girl and the men to scream in unison. The leader dropped the girl and he and his men ran off. The girl curled up into a ball, and was shaking very hard.

  
Amara approached the girl carefully. Curled up like she was, Amara couldn't get a good look at her. She was shaking really hard too, whimpering over and over, "Not wolves. Oh no, no, no, no, no."   
"Hey, it's okay. Those guys are gone, and I won't hurt you." The girl looked up at Amara, fear in her eyes. Amara guessed because she was a demon, but on closer inspection, she could sense it was something else.  
"My name is Amara. Please don't be afraid."   
"Are you a wolf demon?"   
"Yes, but I don't eat humans or anything like that. Besides, our leader told us not to. My wolves won't hurt you either," here she kicked at one of the wolves that had gotten too close to the girl. "If they eat a human, I'll have a new outfit or blanket." The girl smiled. "Thank you for saving me. My name is Rin."

  
Although Rin told Amara she had been left on her own plenty of times before, Amara refused. "I'll leave when your Sesshoumaru-sama comes back." The two of them sat together for a while. Rin asked about Amara and why she didn't eat humans. "Well, I was raised with humans. They're my friends and no matter how bad a human is, I won't eat one. It would be too odd." Rin was satisfied with the answer, and she sat quietly most of the time. Once, when Amara looked down, she noticed Rin had fallen asleep, her head propped up against Amara's shoulder. Amara shifted a bit to allow Rin more comfort, and she ended up dosing off herself.  
The sun was beginning to set when Amara awoke. Rin was still sound asleep, so as carefully as she could, she laid the girl down on the soft grass. Stretching, Amara noticed a huged demon flying in the sky, looking as if it was getting ready to land. When she realized it intended on landing where she was standing, she backed up closer to Rin, and crouched down beside her, ready to defend the small girl. The demon resembled a dragon, and had two heads. _"That must be Ah-Un."_ A white haired man got off, followed by another, smaller demon that represented a toad._"And that must be her Sesshoumaru-sama and Jaken-sama."_ She noticed that they both seemed to sniff out her scent. "My Lord," the toad demon said, "it's a wolf demon." Here, the smaller creature noticed Rin lying beside Amara. "She's killed Rin!!" Jaken screeched. Sesshoumaru looked calm, but Amara didn't like the cold look in his eyes. "Jaken, be quiet. Do you smell any blood?" Jaken was quiet. "No, my Lord." "Well then, Rin isn't dead." His eyes swept over Amara, and she noticed his hand didn't leave the hilt of his sword, just in case he needed to use it.  
"I mean no harm to Rin. Some bandits came by earlier and I heard her scream. I scared them off and I was just sitting with her until you came back." Here she looked at Sesshoumaru. "You must be Lord Sesshoumaru. I'm Amara of the wolf youkai pack."  
Sesshoumaru didn't drop his guard, but simply thanked Amara for her concern. "She's afraid of wolves and wolf youkai, isn't she?" Amara asked after a few moments of silence passed between the two demons. "Yes," Sesshoumaru answered, "wolves from your pack killed her. Your leader was in charge of them and allowed them to slaughter an entire village. Rin tried to run from them, but they attacked and killed her. I revieved her with my sword." He touched his second sword. "The only reason I did it was because she showed no fear towards me when I was wounded. She showed concern." For a moment, Amara could have sworn she saw a small amount of tenderness in his eyes, but she wasn't entirely sure. "I'm sorry that happened. We no longer kill humans, Kouga commanded as such." She smiled and added, "Rin seems to be doing well with you though. She's very brave for such a young girl."

  
The two youkai were quiet for a moment as they both watched Rin. As if the girl knew she was being watched, her eyes opened, she stretched and gave a very loud yawn. Seeing Sesshoumaru next to Amara, Rin hopped up.  
"Sesshoumaru-sama, you're back! This is Amara, she's a wolf demon and very nice."  
Sesshoumaru smiled slightly at Rin's explaination. As Rin chattered away about the day she and Amara had, he noticed two other demons come towards them. Amara noticed his tense expression and followed his gaze.  
"Amara-chan! We've been looking all over for you. We thought something had happened..." Ginta's voice trailed off as he saw who stood beside Amara. Both he and Hakkaku took a step back, eyes wide with fear. Amara noticed then that it was almost nightfall and she needed to get back to the den. "It's alright, Ginta. I'm ready to head home." She bent down to Rin's level. "Be a good girl okay? I'll try to come visit you if it's alright with Sesshoumaru-sama." Rin smiled and looked up at Sesshoumaru. "Please, Sesshoumaru-sama? Can Amara-chan come visit us?" Sesshoumaru looked down at Rin, the barest movement of his head confrimed his answer, "I don't see why not."  
Rin turned suddenly and hugged Amara fiercely, "Thank you for rescuing me, Amara-chan. You are the best wolf demon ever." Giving Rin a hug back, she stood and bowed slightly to Sesshoumaru. "Thank you, Lord Sesshoumaru, for allowing us to become friends." Turning towards Ginta and Hakkaku, she grinned and added, "You're not as bad as InuYasha makes you out to be." With a final wave to Rin, she took off, followed by Hakkaku and Ginta.

  
With a baffled look on his face, he looked down at his small compainion. "Rin, who was that girl?"   
"Oh, just a new friend, Sesshoumaru-sama." 


	5. Unspoken Words

  
Title: Unspoken Words  
  
Genre: General/Romance  
  
Pairings: Hakkaku/Amara (OC)  
  
Rating: G  
  
Summary: Hakkaku wonders what to do about his growing feelings for Amara.  
  
Hakkaku stretched as the morning light awoke him from a pleasant dream. He and Ginta, along with other members of the pack, had opted to sleep outside since the weather had turned warmer. Walking into the main den behind the waterfall, he surveyed the few that had slept inside last night. At the back slept the pack's leader Kouga, and Ayame. The two had grown a lot closer the past month or so. Kouga had once fallen hard for Kagome, a human girl from another time, but recent events, as well as older ones, had brought him closer to Ayame.  
  
It had all been because of Kagome's friend, Amara. She was from Kagome's time, but she was a wolf youkai, and a direct descendent of Kouga and Ayame themselves. When Kagome had discovered this, she had brought Amara to their time and Kouga had been thrilled that his pack would prosper. Amara was just as fast as Kouga, and was a welcome member amongst the pack.  
Hakkaku looked over at Amara's bed, noticing it was empty. She had left the day before, saying she had some things to do back home, but promising to return in two days time. _Only one more day, then she'll be back with us._ Hakkaku thought. He and Ginta had been affected by Amara in a lot of ways. At first, she had been a friend; someone to hunt and joke around with. She was a strong and wise, a warrior who could hold her own against other demons, and a pack member who helped make wise decisions. Besides Ayame, she was the only female around Ginta and Hakkaku's age in the pack, and that had led to some problems between the two of them.  
  
It had started out innocently enough; Kouga asked that Ginta and Hakkaku help Amara with her fighting skills, hunt with her, those types of things. Often both of them would go, but sometimes Kouga would only ask one of them. That's where the problems began. For the past couple of times, it was Hakkaku who had gone off with Amara. He was slightly bigger than Ginta and in Kouga's mind, he would be able to protect Amara during the long journey from the mountains to the well where she and Kagome went through time. This would often cause arguments between the two, but for the most part, they did as Kouga told them. Ginta got to spend his own time with Amara, since he helped her with her hunting skills. He was good with a knife and spear, so he was the one who taught Amara most of the time on how to hunt. It wasn't Hakkaku's fault that Kouga had chosen _him_ to walk with Amara back to the well...at night...when the moon was out and everything looked romantic....  
  
Hakkaku shook himself. He didn't want his feelings towards Amara to change. He liked being friends with her, but ever since Kouga had told him that he would be walking with her to the well when she left, he had begun to notice her differently. He noticed how graceful she was when she ran, how dark her hair was compared to her skin. He noticed how soft her voice was when it was just the two of them, how when she said his name it made his body shiver slightly and goose bumps appear on his arms. Not knowing at first what was wrong with him, he had gone to the only person he knew had some sort of understanding about time traveling women. Kagome.  
_He had gone off on his own to look for her. He found her in the village she and her friends would rest at during their quest to find the jewel shards like the ones Kouga had. He had been nervous at first, especially since Inuyasha demanded to know what he was doing there.  
  
"I've come looking for Kagome-neesan. I have something I want to talk to her about."  
  
"So Kouga sent you to do his dirty work, huh? Stupid wolf, can't do something by himself..."  
  
"This has nothing to do with Kouga. I just want to ask Kagome some questions."  
  
After Kagome had finally told Inuyasha to "lay off", whatever that meant, she and Hakkaku went into a nearby hut. She must have known he was nervous, since she smiled at him and asked him what he wanted to talk about.  
  
"Well," he started, "it's about Amara-chan. I'm beginning to see her as more than a friend, and I'm not really sure what to do. I don't want do something wrong when I ask her to be my mate."  
  
Kagome had told him that, even though it was nice he didn't want to do anything wrong when asking Amara, girls from her time weren't used to being asked to be someone's mate right off. "It's like this," she explained,"girls and guys from my time usually go out on dates before they ask someone to be their mates. Most humans call it marriage, and they usually don't jump into it right away." She saw that Hakkaku looked sort of dejected, for his shoulders slumped and he hung his head, but he did agree with her.  
  
"Yeah, I remember how you were with Kouga when he first wanted you to be his mate. Wolves, and wolf demons for that matter, mate for life, and I wouldn't want Amara-chan to be unhappy with me. I just don't know how to go about making her my mate." Kagome grinned. "Basically, just do what you're doing now; being friends with her, but also try to show her how special she is to you, or do something extra nice. You don't have to act totally different around her, just try to show that you want to be more than friends with her and take it from there."  
_Hakkaku had done nice things for Amara, things he figured females would like. He bought her flowers from a nearby field, he made her a new necklace, as well as a new wolf pelt blanket. As for mentioning his feelings though, he wasn't quite ready for that. Every time he tried, it never came out quite right, so he had simply done nice things for her.  
  
Hakkaku sighed. He wondered if he'd get enough courage to say it once she came back to the pack. It's not like he was afraid of telling her, he just wanted to do it and let Amara know he meant it.  
  
He stopped short, forgetting how far he had journeyed while he was thinking. He was now close to the well, and decided he might as well rest up before heading back to the den. Still contemplating what to do about his situation with Amara, he didn't notice the deep sigh that came from inside the well. The next thing he knew, he was lying on his stomach, an embarrassed Amara on top of him.  
"Hakkaku-kun! I'm so sorry, I didn't think anyone would be close to the well. Here, let me help you up." That proved to be something quite difficult, since Hakkaku was a bit heavier than Amara thought, and they both went down on the ground again, this time with Hakkaku on his back and Amara on top of him.  
  
Hakkaku looked up into Amara's eyes and blushed. He was surprised to see a matching blush go across her cheeks, but helped her up quickly. "I didn't know you were coming back so soon, Amara-chan. I...I missed you." He was even further surprised when Amara wrapped her arms around him and gave him a huge hug. "I missed you too, Hakkaku-kun. I got finished with my stuff early and decided to come over here."  
  
He lifted a backpack that Amara had dropped in the process of landing on him the first time and peeked inside it. Pocky, ramen, and chips were inside along with a small box shaped container that felt cold when Hakkaku touched it. "That's a freezer", Amara commented. "It's small enough to hold the drinks I packed and still be somewhat light on my back." She grinned and added, "Hey, that rhymed!" Walking away from the well, Hakkaku asked what all she had to do in her time. "Oh, a test and a couple of other things. My dad has to go back to America for a few days on business, so I had the important job of making sure he packed everything he needed. Mom's going with him, since some of her family lives there. I'm having the house all to myself in a couple of days. I think I should throw a party."  
  
"Are you really going to do that?" Hakkaku asked. He knew that if she did, he wouldn't be able to go. Amara smiled at him, "Oh, probably not. I told them I'd just come here instead. There's not a lot of crime where we live, so I'm sure the house will be fine." This pleased Hakkaku. Maybe he could admit his feelings for her then, since she'd be able to stay longer than she usually could.  
They were walking along when the sky began to grow dark. Neither of them had realized that it had gotten so late, and they weren't close to the den. Heavy drops of rain began to fall, and the two of them began to run as fast as they could, in hopes that they wouldn't get too wet. Hakkaku was behind Amara when he saw her slip. She fell, and when Hakkaku had caught up to her, he saw a cut along her leg. He looked around and noticed a small cave. If nothing else, they could stay there until the rain let up some. He kneeled on the ground in front of Amara. "Wrap your arms around my neck. I'll carry you to the cave." Doing as she was told, Amara held on tight as Hakkaku got up. He was strong, and with very little effort, carried Amara on his back until they reached the cave.  
  
Inside, Hakkaku built a fire from leaves and other things he managed to find on the cave floor. He went back to where he had placed Amara, and saw that she had bandaged up her leg. She had gotten out some ramen and cooked it over the fire. Soon, they had a warm meal. They ate in silence, until Amara looked over at Hakkaku and smiled. "Thank you for carrying me." Hakkaku smiled, looking down at the ramen in his bowl. "I didn't know if you had hurt it badly or not, but I didn't want to chance you hurting it more." They continued eating, but Hakkaku kept sneaking glances at Amara. When he had finished, he walked over to the cave opening and held his bowl outside. When Amara had finished, he did the same for hers, then stretched out, resting his upper body on the back wall of the cave. Amara joined him, resting her head on his shoulder.  
  
"It looks like we're probably going to be here all night." Leaning over to get her backpack, she rummaged around until she found the pelt blanket that Hakkaku had made for her. It was big, so she draped it over the both of them. Hakkaku began to protest. "Amara-chan, I would rather you have your blanket. I don't want you getting cold." She smiled, but placed the blanket back over him. "Please, Hakkaku-kun? I don't want you getting cold either. Besides, it's big and soft and comfy."  
He was going to argue more, but then Amara snuggled close to him, resting her head on his chest. He shifted a bit and wrapped his arm around her. He looked down at her, and seeing that she was looking back up at him, smiled. She jumped when a streak of lightning went across the sky. "Don't worry, Amara-chan," he said. "I'll always protect you."  
  
Amara smiled at him before snuggling close to him again. She liked the feeling she had right now, the feeling of being safe and cared for. "Thank you, Hakkaku-kun." She eventually nodded off, but Hakkaku managed to stay awake a bit longer, occasionally poking at the fire to make sure it wouldn't go out.  
  
He finally managed to fall asleep as dawn broke. This would mean that the cave wouldn't be too dark by the time they headed back to the den. He slept peacefully until Amara's voice woke him.  
  
"Come on, Hakkaku-kun, time to wake up. Kouga's probably having a fit wondering where you are." Hakkaku stretched, and in his half asleep state, noticing Amara was pretty close to him, nuzzled his cheek against hers. He pulled back and noticed Amara blushing; that's when the realization of what he just did dawned on him. Hakkaku's blush practically spread over his entire body, but Amara just smiled at him and nuzzled him back. They packed up Amara's things and headed back towards the den. This time, they walked along holding hands.  
  
_Next Chapter: Can Ginta and Hakkaku's friendship survive the competition for Amara's heart?_  



End file.
